This Too Will End
by TripleThreatTrio
Summary: The Darkspawn Chronicles exchanges the story of the Warden for the story of the Hero of the Archdemon. But what if they were one in the same? Unfortunately for Edwinna Cousland, that is exactly what haunts her dreams.


The first time Edwinna had the dream, it wasn't too bad. She woke with a start, a quick intake of breath. She laid, staring at the wall, willing herself to remember what woke her up. When she couldn't seem to catch hold of the dream, she decided must've been nothing and curled up again, falling asleep.

The second time was worse. The second time she _could_ remember things, people. Leliana's fear stricken face, Morrigan's strangled cries, Alistair's pleas... Even when she awoke those sounds and images were fresh in her mind. She'd woken as she had before, with a jump and a gasp but this night she couldn't fall back asleep so easily.

Edwinna turned over to look at Alistair, deep in slumber beside her. She rolled completely over to face him, watching the subtle movements of his breathing until morning finally came around. She pretended she'd slept the whole night and Alistair didn't ask about the bags under her eyes.

The third time didn't happen until weeks later. Edwinna had grown comfortable again, sleeping soundly and having all but forgotten about the dream. But when she saw herself, dressed in darkspawn armor and hearing the whispers of the Archdemon, she remembered.

She was standing outside Denerim. It must've been the day of the final battle as Edwinna had only seen a sky that red once before.

Her body felt heavy, weighed down by the massive plate armor she wore. It was the kind worn by Hurock Alphas, bloodied and dented as if she'd been in a nasty fight. She walked through the gates, hearing the Archdemon speak quietly to her.

 _They're here. Find them._

She knew they were here, she could feel them- the Wardens. There were two, one older and one younger. Riordian and Alistair. They had separated and Edwinna decided the older one would be the first to go. She could feel the taint in his blood, he was near his Calling. His nightmares had left him vulnerable and the voice left him panicked.

The city was burning; darkspawn scuttled around her like rats, feasting on the bodies of fallen citizens. She had little to no trouble getting through the market district.

Above her, the Archdemon roared and she felt a sense of pride.

That is, until a sudden outpour of pain erupted from the Archdemon's thoughts.

The older Warden had struck, tearing through the God's soft underbelly and sending it crashing into the tall tower of Fort Drakon. Edwinna was already on her way when the Archdemon spoke to her again.

 _Atop the fort, quickly. The other warden comes._

She saw Sten before he saw her. His grey skin stood out against the reddish hue of everything else and she wasted no time in moving him out of her way.

He tore away her helmet in battle and his staggered reaction bought her a chance to plunge her sword into the soft skin of his neck.

Sten grasped at his throat, eyes still wide in shock. He looked so sad, so _betrayed._ "Kadan..."

Edwinna had no time to waste, leaving her blade behind as she opened the gates and ascended the fort.

The Warden and his squad had beaten her to the Archdemon, already beginning their attack.

They had been expecting _her_ , but not the friends she brought along.

Ogres were hard enough to deal with on their own, she knew. Amongst a group of other sentient darkspawn, they were nearly unstoppable.

Morrigan was the first to go, her thin armor no match for the ogre's iron grip. He nearly split her in half, tossing aside her body. Edwinna could hear her limp body slop against the concrete ground.

The Archdemon's laughs in her head were relentless.

 _Yes, yes, yes._

Leliana was next, taking out the ogre with a well aimed shot before a blow to her back dropped her to her knees. The rogue had taken out a surprising amount of Edwinna's forces, something the Leliana paid for with a blade to the chest.

The blood was so warm and smooth.

The Warden was last, but by the time Edwinna made her way to him he was already on his stomach, crawling towards where his sword had landed. She saw his eyes dart towards his fallen comrades, his shoulders slumping further and further with each body he counted.

Edwinna hadn't even noticed the corpse of a dog, curled around Alistair's feet.

She stood over him, sword still dripping in her hand.

He strained to look upwards and let out a final gasp. "Winnie?"

Edwinna woke again, but this time she was sat upright with cheeks wet from tears she hadn't known she'd been crying. Her back felt damp and sweaty and her hair was stuck to her forehead. A hand reached out to touch hers.

"Winnie?"

She jumped, twisting away from a wide eyed Alistair. His eyes stayed on hers, watching her as she regained her bearings.

She was home, in her bed, awake. Everyone was alive, the Blight had ended, the Archdemon was dead. Yet, she still couldn't shake its voice.

 _Yes, yes, yes._

"Where are you going?"

Edwinna had slid herself from bed, starting to pull on the boots she kept at her bedside. "A walk."

"Do you see what time it is?"

"I know."

She'd barely gotten the chance to grab the other shoe before Alistair was in front of her, stopping her hands and holding them in his.

He pulled her face up, cupping her chin. "What's wrong?"

Edwinna looked up to the window just above his head. She didn't want to talk about it. It was stupid, it was just a dream. She shouldn't be so distraught. So she smiled. "It's nothing. Just a bad dream."

Alistair didn't reply right away. "I know you haven't been sleeping."

"Yeesh, have I been looking that bad?"

"Edwinna." Alistair said, once again moving her face so she was looking at him. "You can talk to me about these things."

But she couldn't, not really. Talking meant making it real and that was the last thing she wanted. "Talk about what things?" Edwinna chuckled. "I got a bit spooked by a dream, it's not the end of the world. Trust me, I've seen what that looks like."

Alistair didn't smile. "Was it about the Blight?"

He was _not_ letting this go. "Yeah, and big ugly ogres. You'd be happy though, it tore Morrigan in half."

Alistair winced, squeezing her hands tighter. "I'm sorry-"

"For what?" Edwinna smiled again, brighter this time. "I told you, it was just a dream. Blight, darkspawn. Big ogres... like I haven't seen enough of those."

"Then why go for a walk?" Alistair pressed. "Why not go back to bed if it's 'just a dream'?"

Edwinna shrugged. She really just wanted out of the room. To get a moment to think alone; if she could just do that she'd be fine. "To clear my head."

"Really?"

"Why are you so pushy all of a sudden? It's not that big of-"

"Because you're acting like I'm an idiot!" Alistair interrupted. "I know you've been up these past few nights. I know you haven't been sleeping."

Edwinna sat back. She wanted to say Alistair was acting ridiculous but even she knew that he was telling the truth. She _had_ been up the past few months and she _hadn't_ been sleeping. But she didn't want to admit to that. "I-"

"You're exhausting yourself, just like you did during the Blight. _Always_ on the front lines, _always_ ready to take the brunt of the attack and _never_ letting anyone help." Alistair continued. He looked down at his own hands, rubbing his thumbs against Edwinna's palms. "I tell you to talk to me, I tell you I'm here for you, I tell you I know what you're going through. And you still would rather freeze outside on a walk in the middle of the night than just tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong-" He wasn't letting up and Edwinna was left with only one defense now: deny, deny, deny.

But Alistair wasn't letting her. "Bullshit!"

"I'm fine, Alistair!" Edwinna blurted. "It was a bad dream! It's better if I just forget about it!"

"You're not sleeping! That's somehow better?"

"That's what nightmares do. They wake you up. Talking about it isn't going to change that."

Alistair was quiet. He looked down and his and Edwinna's hands, rubbing her palms again. His voice lowered. "Why won't you talk to me?"

"I don't-" Edwinna sighed aloud. _Because I don't want to worry you._ She leaned forward and let her forehead rest against Alistair's. "I talk to you when it's important."

He squeezed her hands before bringing them to his lips. He was paused there for a while.

Edwinna wasn't quite sure what to say.

"Please. Just... stay." Alistair mumbled. "Even if you don't say anything."

The urge to get up and leave hadn't left Edwinna. She itched for this whole situation to be done. She'd been so _stupid_ \- she shouldn't have gotten up. Now Alistair was worried sick. She hated that look on his face. "Alright."

Alistair pulled off the one boot Edwinna had partially gotten on. He set it carefully back in its place before wandering over to his side of the bed.

Edwinna situated herself under the blankets and stared up at the ceiling. She didn't want to go back to sleep and she wasn't even so sure it was the _dream_ keeping her awake anymore. After waking up, the danger and horror had completely dissipated. Alistair's concern had not.

 _You're exhausting yourself, just like you did during the Blight._

Edwinna frowned. Everyone had been exhausted during the Blight - there wasn't a single one of them who didn't have nightmares. They were something that happened, something a lot of them got used to; why was Alistair getting so upset over this?

 _And you still would rather freeze outside on a walk in the middle of the night than just tell me what's wrong._

Because the night wouldn't fret over her every move for the next three weeks! Maker, it wasn't that big of a deal! It was just a dream!

Edwinna sighed. It was _just_ a dream.


End file.
